After 1-Year Standoff, NJ Gov and Senate Agree on Plan to Consider State Supreme Court Nominee

Ending a one-year standoff over Gov. Chris Christie’s refusal, in defiance of tradition, to reappoint a sitting state supreme court judge, the New Jersey Senate today marked the one-year anniversary of his nomination of a replacement jurist by announcing that it would consider attorney Anne Patterson for a seat on the state’s top court.

However, she will be considered for a different supreme court vacancy than the one Christie intended to fill when he nominated her, reports the Philadelphia Inquirer.

In exchange for the senate’s agreement to consider Patterson for a seat, Christie will resubmit her nomination to replace Justice Roberto Rivera-Soto, who plans to leave the court in September.

A Star-Ledger article published on May 3 last year, when Christie’s nomination of Patterson for the judicial job was announced, provides more information about her background.

As detailed in an earlier ABAJournal.com post, the senate said it would not consider a replacement for Justice John Wallace Jr., the supreme court judge Christie refused to reappoint, until his scheduled retirement in 2012.